The role of the creative industries in regional development during the economic cycle: case of the Region of Epirus, Greece

In the era of extraordinary changes and globalisation, many researchers acknowledge that creativity and innovation are now driving the new economy. Countries and regions that embrace creativity generate higher revenue, more jobs and provide greater stability. The objective of this paper is to analyse the role of cultural and creative industries in regional development during the economic cycle. In this context, we map the current situation and needs for development of the cultural and creative industries using the case of the Region of Epirus in Greece. This research is based on literature reviews, interviews, statistical data and commercial register’s data. The data was collected between September 2014 and March 2015. The database is built according to the NACE codes used to describe the cultural and creative industries. In the paper, we analyse the trend in the development of cultural and creative industries during the last decades with emphasis on the years of the last economic crisis. We identify main opportunities and challenges for its development, necessary conditions, main constraints and we try to outline main directions for future sector’s growth taking into consideration the assumption that the development of this sector maybe the engine of the future region’s growth

Decision making using multicriteria analysis: A case study of decision modeling career in education

The aim of this paper is to offer an applicable evaluation framework relating to the right choice of one’s profession via his/her studies. The first part of the paper consists of the basic principles of Multicriteria Decision Making. To begin with, the paper initially focuses on the Macbeth Method. This helps to provide a perspective for procedural types of decisions in which various qualitative and quantitative aspects are incorporated. In the second part of the paper, the above-mentioned multicriteria method is applied to a “real-world” case concerning a specific case of a student, Eva. For this specific study, it is concluded that the factors of greatest importance that lead to choosing the University Eva finally chose, were four: the cost of undergraduate studies, the reputation-status of the University, its logistics and infrastructure and its interconnections with other Universities and other Academic Institutions

Minimum wage and unemployment in greek labour market: A descriptive analysis

The purpose of this paper is to investigate the relationship between the minimum wage level and the rates of unemployment and employment in the Greek labour market. More specifically, this study analyses the evolution of the minimum wage during the period 2000-2013 and also whether these changes have really affected the unemployment and employment rates or not. The main conclusion of our study supports several other studies conclusions suggesting that the level of minimum wage in Greece did not really affect the unemployment and employment rates. The views of economists on effect of the establishing of minimum wages are quite contradictory. The evaluation of relationship between labour market and minimum wage rate is either positive or negative or even not related at all, depending on the assumptions about characteristics of labour market

Evaluation of leasing as a method of funding Investments in greek agribusiness sector

Funding for acquiring assets in Greek agribusiness sector is very common and supports Greek agribusiness SME's production. Purpose of this study is evaluation of leasing as a method of financing in order to acquire assets used directly in the production process of a business of secondary Greek agribusiness sector or even vertically integrated business. Thus, research was held in December of 2012, collecting proper data from Greek banking sector and considering Tax Legislation. Selection decision of practices financing in the event of such an investment should be made after taking into consideration several factors. Proper financial evaluation of future investment is necessary, while it's too necessary to be compared the financing choices that are given in Greece. Considering Tax Legislation, Banking Practices, and Law on Leasing, financing methods were compared in reference period. Avoiding generalizations, typical examples are given, showing that leasing preceded against borrowing, considering conditions prevailing in Greece at the time. But decision making for selection of financing method is affected by factors, which may lead to either correct or incorrect conclusions for firm's interests, if evaluation is not correct or there are personal interests of decision-makers in the administration. Consequently, incentives to use leasing for financing a business can be a lot, but quite important are ownership structure, nature of investment opportunities, business risk and tax status.(original abstract

Market liberalization in a Small Open Economy and Its Impact on employment characteristics

Market liberalization affects overall employment. The institutional liberalization of specific industry took place quickly at European and global level, aimed at upgrading the role of the market and establishing a competitive environment. Two opposing trends were noted in the area of employment: job losses in public enterprises and employment Growth in new private enterprises operating in new subsectors. A change in ownership relations, via privatization and the entry of private undertakings in the market, causes important differentiations in size and characteristics of employment

Female Entrepreneurship in Agricultural Sector. The Case of Municipality of Pogoni in the Period of Economic Crisis

Purpose of this field research is the study of the multifunctional role of rural women both in development and primary sector’s businesses. The survey was conducted in 2014, in Municipality of Pogoni, Greece, by personal interviews and questionnaire with women holding a small business in primary sector. Thus, the results about female entrepreneurship are unique for this specific rural area. It is concluded that within modernization of agricultural sector, the role of rural women has greatly improved in production and organization of agricultural labor. Female entrepreneurship networking, small businesses’ succession, and necessity and opportunity entrepreneurship in primary sector’s businesses are examined and also how these affect female entrepreneurship. Women entrepreneurs’ opinions were catalogued. Factors such as education and vocational training are important in enhancing the role of rural women. Finally, main problems woman entrepreneur faces, mainly economic and managerial, were pointed out, while economic crisis seems to affect negatively the agricultural sector of this region

Corporate Social Responsibility in SMEs and MNEs. The Different Strategic Decision Making

The purpose of this paper is about how the strategic decisions are affected by CSR's factors, how different are the strategies that are being adopted by the SMEs compared to the MNEs. The SMEs represent a major share of economic value creation worldwide, and differ substantially from MNEs in terms of organizational characteristics, behavioral guiding principles, financial and human resources. The literature mainly is focusing on how large multinational corporations (MNEs) can address to environmental and social problems that arise globally. How the largest multinational enterprises (MNEs) engage Small and Medium Sized Enterprises (SMEs) in their (inclusive) business strategies, either as suppliers, distributors, customers, innovators or as a target of their CSR policies are searchable. We notice that SMEs possess several organizational characteristics that are favorable for promoting the implementation of CSR related practices. In the contrast, the MNEs possess several characteristics that are favorable for promoting external communication and reporting about CSR, but at the same time constrain the internal implementation. Topics, such as how different is the dedication of the personnel, the sensitivities of the enterprises upon social matters, the critical decisions of the management between SMEs and MNEs, and how the stakeholder engagement affect this strategic decision making are discussed hereafter

Telecommunication Deregulation: The Case of Greece

Abstract In the early 1990's important structural policies began in Greece i

Saving Motives and Intention towards Saving of Bulgarian Pomaks

This research intends to shed light on the relation between individuals' saving motives and their intention towards saving, by examining the effect of background characteristics on a sample of 400 Bulgarian Pomaks. Findings revealed that future uncertainties consist the saving motive, which positively relates to the intention towards saving, with university graduates scoring higher on the saving intention scale than other educational groups. The implications of the findings are particularly important for the financial planners and educators since they are the ones who support Bulgarian Pomaks to maintain their standard of living and be prepared for financial uncertainty through saving. Keywords: Saving Motives, Intention towards Saving, Bulgarian Pomak JEL CLassifications: D10, D14.    DOI: https://doi.org/10.32479/ijefi.963